Qinwen Zheng was left furious with a line judge during her defeat to Aryna Sabalenka in the Wuhan Open final. The home favourite was beaten in three sets, with Sabalenka claiming a 6-3 5-7 6-3 victory to wrap up her fourth title of the year.
During the final set, Zheng clashed with a line judge who she felt was impeding her while trying to play a backwards shot over the shoulder. She was unable to control her fury after the ball dropped outside the lines to give Sabalenka the point.
Zheng got into the face of the line judge and shouted furiously at him before turning to the chair umpire and venting her frustration. The line judge was unmoved in spite of Zheng’s verbal tirade and maintained eye contact with her throughout.
Sabalenka wrapped up her victory three games later to silence the home crowd, who were trying their best to push Zheng over the line. It marked her third successive triumph at the Wuhan Open and saw her close in on Iga Swiatek at the top of the WTA rankings.
Speaking in her post-match interview, Sabalenka said: “That sounds crazy [winning three titles]. This place definitely feels like home. Thank you guys for coming and bringing an amazing atmosphere tonight.
“Even though you were supporting her, I really enjoyed playing in front of you. I got a lot of support throughout the tournament, so thank you so much. It is always an amazing atmosphere on and off the court.
“I will definitely come back even stronger than this year and I will do my best to keep hold of this beautiful trophy in this beautiful place. I will do my best to come back as strong as possible.”
Zheng, meanwhile, felt there were plenty of positives to take from her performance despite failing to secure victory. She has never beaten Sabalenka in any of their meetings but is confident that she will finally break her duck at the next time of asking.
“I am glad to see that I am improving,” she said. “I have felt much closer than in the Australian Open. However, I need to keep working to be better.
“I would say my tennis has been a five or six out of 10. I have a lot of room for improvement, there is much to evolve, but I know how to do it.”
